Death of the New Gods #1Review

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Jim Starlin closes the book on Jack Kirby's epic

By Dan Phillips

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Like so many Countdown-related series, Death of the New Gods barely even had a fighting chance at succeeding thanks to the way in which DC editorial has botched the handling of this already flawed crossover. Not only was the revelation of the New Gods' murderer already spoiled in last month's issue of Birds of Prey, but other books have beaten us over the head with the idea that someone is offing the most powerful beings in the DC Universe so many times now, it's hard to care at all about this miniseries' central mystery.

Thankfully, Jim Starlin seems to be using his Death of the New Gods miniseries more as a bookend to Jack Kirby's original Fourth World opus than a conventional murder mystery. You can say what you want about DC and Countdown's editors and their complete mismanagement of this crossover event, but you have to give them credit for hiring the right guy to end Kirby's most heralded DC work. Jim Starlin has made a career out of telling these sorts of sweeping epics, from Marvel's original Captain Marvel series to the Infinity Gauntlet/War/Crusade trilogy to his cult-favorite creator-owned work, Dreadstar.

As a writer, Starlin is right at home exploring such heavy-handed themes as death, God, religion, predetermination and the infinite, and those heady subjects run through the core of the Fourth World mythology. As an artist, Starlin displays much of the type of energy and dynamism that made Kirby the legend he is while also tapping into the style and aesthetics of John Byrne's work on the Fourth World. Along with Matt Banning on inks and Jeremy Cox on colors, Starlin provides some absolutely stunning artwork, a visual treat from start to finish. His skinny, fragile depiction of Metron in particular captures the essence of that character and for the first time reminds us of his ridiculously old age. An action scene involving Mister Miracle and Big Barda - though essentially pointless - crackles with the kinetic pop of Kirby's work, which is the highest sort of compliment you can pay any artist, let alone one attempting to close the book on the King's own unfinished epic.

Because this is essentially the final chapter of all the New Gods stories over the years and because Starlin rightfully gears this final chapter to Fourth World fans, newer readers might find this series to be a little impenetrable at times and possibly a bit too abstract in its philosophy. That's fine. Kirby's original work had those same faults as well, magnified by ten, actually. The fun of those stories, and the fun of this issue, is in the sheer over-the-top nature of these characters and themes.

This is by far the best Countdown-related series you'll find. If only it weren't Countdown-related.